


Electric Feel

by makkurataichou



Category: Tales of Zestiria
Genre: Based On A Writing Prompt, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Modern AU, superpowers?? sort of
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-18
Updated: 2017-11-18
Packaged: 2019-02-03 19:13:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,135
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12754458
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/makkurataichou/pseuds/makkurataichou
Summary: “I’m not going to apologize for this,” he says. “Not anymore.”





	Electric Feel

**Author's Note:**

> This one got a little out of hand because I ended up basing it on a dream, so I decided to post it on its own!! Based on a dialogue prompt from krissey THANK YOU SO MUCH ILU THIS WAS SO MUCH FUN TO WRITE

Mikleo still remembers the day they first met, as though it were only yesterday.

 

* * *

 

_“I'm Sorey!” the boy announced with a bright smile, holding out his hand in a friendly gesture. Mikleo took it, then jumped back as though he had been burned...which was honestly not far from the truth; after all, he'd just felt a small electric current run through his entire body, the hairs on the back of his neck still tingling with the aftershock._

_The boy’s eyes grew wide, and Mikleo saw something akin to fear in his expression. “Oh! I'm so sorry!” he exclaimed, tears welling in his eyes. “Please, don't be afraid, I swear I won't hurt you again…”_

_“Afraid?” Mikleo tilted his head slightly. “Why would I be afraid? That was just static electricity, right?”_

_Sorey's frown grew deeper, sadder. “Not really,” he admitted softly. “Dad says that I'm...different. That I shouldn't touch people, or I'll hurt them.”_

_He looked at the ground, and a few droplets trickled down his face, landing next to his feet. “I've always wanted friends, but he says I'll only ever end up pushing them away,” he adds, sniffing loudly. “I'm sorry, I just hoped it might be different this time…”_

_Mikleo shook his head. “Why would people not want to be your friend because of that?” he scoffed. “All I have to do is not touch you, and I'll be fine, right?”_

_At that, Sorey tilted his head upwards, eyes still sparkling with tears. “Y-you mean you'll be my friend? Really?”_

_“I don't see why not.” Mikleo huffed proudly, as though he'd solved the simplest riddle in the world. “I'm Mikleo. You're here to visit the museum, right? Do you want to go inside and see my uncle’s office?”_

_The boy beamed, jumping up and down. “Yes, yes! Michael is one of the coolest engineers ever! I've always wanted to see his collection of models and papers and rocks and—”_

 

* * *

 

Mikleo lets out a soft sigh, smiling at the memory. He slides off the couch and moves to open the blinds, letting more sunlight into his apartment so he can start the day.

The memories of the four years he spent with Sorey are still some of his fondest. Hardly a day passes when Mikleo doesn't miss him.

 

* * *

 

_“_ _Mikleo, I'm so sorry!” Sorey cried out as the silver-haired boy collapsed onto the ground, his entire body racked with pain. “I just...I just wanted to give you a hug, I didn't want this—”_

_“I-it's okay, Sorey,” Mikleo choked out, feeling the last of the electricity leave his body as he came more fully into contact with the earth beneath him. “I understand...it's not easy for me to hold back either.”_

_“R-really?” Sorey peered down at him, hands firmly clasped behind him so he would refrain from touching Mikleo again. “You...you’ve wanted to hug me, too?”_

_Mikleo made an effort to stand, stumbling slightly and holding his hands out to prevent Sorey from coming closer. “I...I don't know,” he admitted, suddenly shy. “I've thought about it before, and what it'd feel like...to be able to touch you without...without_ _this_ _.”_

_Sorey smiled sadly. “It doesn't change even if you're the one who touches me,” he sighed. “Every moment you spend near me you're hurting yourself, Mikleo, I don't want to keep doing this to you—”_

_“It doesn't matter!” Mikleo glared at him. “Don't ever think that way, Sorey,” he continued, voice low. “Even if you keep hurting me, I'll never leave your side. No matter what.”_

_The other boy looked as though he might cry. “Mikleo,” he breathed, taking a step forward and grasping the hem of his shirt, careful so as to not make skin contact. “I...I’ve never wanted to stay with someone as much as I want to stay with you.”_

_“Me too.” The words left Mikleo's mouth in a breathy whisper, and he stepped close enough for their breaths to mingle, their foreheads an inch away from each other. “I'm okay with things being like this.”_

_Sorey's gaze softened. “I want to kiss you,” he admitted, his cheeks turning pink, “but I've already hurt you so much…”_

_Mikleo shook his head. “Then let me,” he replied, and leaned forward to capture Sorey's mouth with his own._

 

* * *

 

He still remembers that kiss, warm and soft despite the pain that rushed through him during every single moment of it. He wants to hold the memory to his chest and keep it there forever, but his mind charges forward with thoughts of the painful days that came afterwards.

Including the day that finally tore them apart.

 

* * *

 

_“—the victim, Sorey Shepherd, was abducted last evening near the abandoned Camlann research facility. He is twelve years old, and still missing. If you have any information about his whereabouts, please contact us at—”_

_The reporter’s words seemed to fade into the background as the screen began to show pictures of Sorey's face. Mikleo felt a hole growing in the pit of his stomach. He had just seen Sorey off yesterday—the boy had smiled and waved at him, saying “see you tomorrow, Mikleo!” before rushing towards the bus stop as always. They'd promised to meet up again today, and tomorrow, and the day after...but now, those days would never come. His best friend had just been declared missing, and Mikleo didn't know what to do with himself._

_He wanted to go search for Sorey, but he knew it was impossible. The police were probably already on the case—Sorey's family was affluent, and they had the resources needed to track him down. In addition to that, the entire area around the Camlann facility had already been declared off-limits. All he could do was sit on the couch and stare at the screen, feeling completely useless._

_Mikleo looked down at his hands and noticed that they were trembling. He thought about Sorey, locked away alone in a place where his voice couldn't reach the outside world, and his eyes began to fill with tears._

_“Sorey,” he whispered, and it came out choked, like a sob. “Please, Sorey, come back home…”_

 

* * *

 

Mikleo relives that memory with a pained frown, shaking his head to clear it from his mind. Sorey was declared dead several years later after his case went cold, and ever since that day Mikleo has tried his hardest to move on. But even after moving away from his hometown and into the city...even after trying to make other friends, both at work and outside of work...nothing has been able to fill the gaping hole in his heart.

Even now, thirteen years later, he cannot let go of Sorey, and it hurts more than he can bear.

 

* * *

 

One day, there is a knock on Mikleo's door. Confused, since he knows none of his coworkers know where he lives, he shuffles over to the front door, tugging his long hair back into a ponytail and peering through the peephole.

A woman with long, silver hair stands at his doorstep, wearing a white lab coat atop a red dress. He doesn't recognize her, but despite his reservations, he unlocks the door to his apartment and greets her with a civil “hello” and “how can I help you?”

“Are you Mikleo?” she asks suddenly, clearly eager to get straight to the point.

Now even more confused than before, he looks her up and down, confirming that he has no idea who she is. “Y-yes?” he replies, his tone questioning. “Who are you? How do you know who I am?”

The woman sucks in a breath, but she seems to compose herself quickly enough, folding her arms in front of her and clearing her throat.

“I'm here because I received approval to be completely transparent regarding the case of Sorey Shepherd,” she says matter-of-factly. “Yours was the only contact information on file, since the family refused to provide us with their details...but you moved so many times since the incident...” She heaves a soft sigh. “It was almost impossible to track you down, honestly…”

Mikleo feels his heart drop within his chest. “W-who are you?” he repeats, taking a step back. “What do you know about what happened to Sorey? He died years ago, there’s no way—”

“—he's alive, Mikleo.”

He freezes. “What...did you say?”

The woman smiles, and he can almost see tears glistening in her eyes. “He's alive, and he's here with me today.”

Then, she glances over to her right side, and a brown-haired man steps out from behind the wall. He's taller, more muscular too, but his eyes are still as bright as ever.

Mikleo feels as though he can't breathe.

“S-Sorey,” he breathes, his chest constricting. “Sorey, is it really you?”

“Mikleo,” the man replies, eyes still filled with that familiar fondness that can belong to none other than _his Sorey_. “I'm home.”

 

* * *

 

“Camlann was only made to look abandoned,” the woman, named Lailah, explains. “It was a top-secret research and training facility for those born with abilities they couldn't control.”

Sorey sits beside her on the couch, not once breaking eye contact with Mikleo as he speaks. “My father sent me there so I could learn to control my abilities,” he adds. “But he left me there with no way to contact you or anyone else...and it took me years to find out that he'd made it look like I'd gone missing.”

“I can't believe it…” Mikleo shakes his head. “After all this time…”

He’s still in disbelief. Seeing Sorey again, in the flesh and grown...it almost feels like a dream. He hardly has words to offer, especially considering the fact that it's as though Sorey has come back from the dead.

Lailah seems to notice the turmoil brewing in his eyes, because she offers him an understanding smile. “Would you two like some time alone?” she offers. “I can stay here if you'd like to go inside and talk for a while.”

Mikleo's eyes drift from Sorey, to her, then back to Sorey. “Is...that okay?”

Sorey nods, getting to his feet. He's nearly a head taller than Mikleo now, and he looks so different and yet so much the same. Without a word, Mikleo leads him through the hallway and into his bedroom, closing the door behind him to give them some privacy.

Then, he lets his tears fall freely, angry and unbidden. “You…!” he cries, grabbing onto the lapels of Sorey's jacket and leaning forward so his fringe barely brushes Sorey's chest. “I can't believe you...all this time the world had me thinking you'd been _killed in cold blood_ …”

“I didn’t want this,” Sorey replies softly, and the words are painful yet _so familiar_. “I never wanted to leave you alone, Mikleo, I swear.”

Mikleo bites his lip. “I know,” he says, and he means it.

Silence fills the space between them, extending far beyond the room they stand in. It encompasses the years they spent apart, years neither of them can ever have back.

Sorey is the one to break it. “There’s one good thing that came of this, though,” he says, and raises a careful hand to cup Mikleo's cheek in his palm.

Mikleo gasps, then closes his eyes tightly and braces himself for the pain to come. But it never does. Several quiet moments later, he opens his eyes and looks up at Sorey, eyes wide and hopeful.

“Is this…” he begins, trailing off when he feels an arm wrap around his back and tug him closer. Once again, he feels no pain.

Sorey returns his gaze with an indescribable fondness. “My training helped me gain control,” he breathes. “Now I won't have to hurt you.”

Mikleo lets out a sob and pushes himself forward into Sorey's embrace, just as arms twine around him in a protective hold. Sorey buries his nose in Mikleo’s shoulder, and Mikleo shivers instinctively—they’ve never been able to touch for this long, and a part of him still expects the pain to come eventually, but as Sorey begins to place kisses against his collarbone and neck, he feels a completely different kind of electricity run through him at the touch.

“Sorey,” he sighs, closing his eyes and tugging the brunet’s head closer to give him better access. “Sorey, I missed you so much.”

“I know,” Sorey murmurs against his neck, “but now we can make up for lost time.”

He pulls away, and the lack of contact is almost disappointing until he brings his hands up to cup Mikleo’s face once again, eyes shining with relief and affection.

“I’m not going to apologize for this,” he says. “Not anymore.”

And when their lips brush against each other for the first time in years, Mikleo feels like he’s whole again.

**Author's Note:**

> Still taking drabble requests!! If you’d like to send me one, shoot me a twitter/tumblr DM and I'll send you the prompt list! \o/


End file.
